Bond was set at $45,000 for one of two suspects accused of firing at Mobile police during a barricade standoff in the RV Taylor community, with prosecutors warning that attempted murder charges could still be added.
The standoff unfolded on South Ann Street, where officers surrounded a home in a cul-de-sac after narcotics officers attempted a drug stop. According to Public Safety Director James Barber, the suspects fired at police and an officer returned fire before the situation was resolved peacefully. Officers first reached out to the barricaded suspect’s close friends to help communicate with him.
Barber said no shots were fired once the suspect barricaded himself inside the home, and no officers were injured. Two handguns were recovered from the scene, though it was not known whether they were stolen.
Police identified the barricaded suspect as Johnny Vail, who authorities said was also involved in the 2015 Christmas shooting at the Wynnsong Theater on Schillinger Road. A second suspect, 20-year-old Andrew Lee Mitchell, was shot and taken to University Hospital. Both were expected to recover.
Vail was booked into Mobile Metro Jail on charges including receiving stolen property, certain persons forbidden from carrying a pistol, and 14 counts of possession of a forged instrument. Police said additional attempted murder charges were possible.